The International Olympic Committee has invited Salt Lake City into another phase of the discussions about hosting a second Winter Olympics, a landmark moment in the efforts to return the Games to Utah that have been underway for much of the time since the cauldron was extinguished on the 2002 Winter Olympics.
The IOC and the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games, will engage in a phase known as the targeted dialogue for the Winter Olympics of 2034. The IOC also said the Games of 2030 and 2034 will be awarded at the same time, a so-called dual award. The awarding of the 2030 and 2034 events is planned at an IOC Session in Paris in July, just before the start of the Summer Olympics in the French capital.
(The leadership team celebrates as the IOC announced that Utah was a finalist for the 2034 Winter Olympic Games. David Jackson/Park Record)
The chair of the IOC’s Future Host Commission said there were positives about the Salt Lake City bid including the legacy of the Games of 21 years ago, the existing facilities, and what he described as “exceptional public support.” The IOC intends to visit the state in April.
(Shannon Bahrke, a medalist in the 2002 Winter Games, speaks to the crowd about her excitement for the likely return of a Games. David Jackson/Park Record)
